Spriggan

Infobox Paranormalcreatures
Creature_Name = Spriggan


Image_Caption = Sculpture by Marilyn Collins
Grouping = Mythological creature Fairy Sprite
Possibilities =
AKA =
Country = Europe
Region = Cornwall
Habitat =
First_Reported = In folklore
Last_Sighted =
Status = Unconfirmed

Spriggans are legendary creatures known from Cornish faery lore.

priggans in folklore

Spriggans were grotesquely ugly, found at old ruins and barrows guarding buried treasure and generally acting as fairy bodyguards. They were also said to be busy thieves. Though usually small, they had the ability to swell to enormous size (they're sometimes speculated to be the ghosts of the old giants).

Certainly their disposition was poor, and they caused mischief to those who offended them. They sent storms to blight crops, and sometimes stole away mortal children, leaving their ugly changelings in their place.

culpture of spriggans

A sculpture of a spriggan by Marilyn Collins can be seen in Crouch End, London, in some arches lining a section of the Parkland Walk (a disused railway line). This sculpture was the inspiration for Stephen King's short story "Crouch End", where a stylised rendition of the sculpture is described. The sculpture is sometimes mistaken for the Green Man or Pan.

References

* Briggs, Katharine; 'A Dictionary of Fairies'; Penguin; 1976
* Underground History: The Northern Heights (http://www.underground-history.co.uk/northernh3.php), Hywel Willams. Accessed 2007-07-08